Portland took a 1-0 lead on a Mark Mancari power play goal at 14:10 of the opening frame.

However, Norfolk responded less than two minutes later while skating shorthanded. Chris Lawrence deflected a Scott Jackson shot past Pirates netminder Jhonas Enroth at 15:51 for his second goal of the season.

The Admirals took a 2-1 lead early in the second period on Mike Lundin’s second goal in as many nights. Lundin’s power play shot found its mark on assists from Blair Jones and Radek Smolenak at 1:28.

Portland tied the game at two goals apiece at 11:06 when Marc-Andre Gragnani beat Norfolk netminder Mike McKenna for an even strength marker.

It took Norfolk just 1:51 to respond with the go-ahead tally, as Steve Downie netted his seventh of the season with helpers from Jackson and Chris Gratton.

McKenna turned aside 13 Portland shots in the third period to seal the victory for Norfolk.

The Admirals return to Scope next week to kick off a nine-game homestand with solid home games from January 7-30. The homestand begins for Norfolk against their East Division Rivals, the Hershey Bears, on Wednesday night at 7:15 p.m.

Wednesday’s game will be Gold’s Gym Giveaway Night, Student Rush Night and Family Fun Pack Night. All fans will receive a coupon for a free one-week membership to Gold’s Gym. With Student Rush Nights, students in high school and college may purchase $8 white level tickets by presenting their school IDs at the Scope Box Office after 2:00 p.m. on the day of the game. With Family Fun Packs, you receive four red level tickets, four hot dogs, four popcorns and four sodas for only $48 – that’s a saving of $37! Family Fun Packs are available at the Scope Box Office or online at ticketmaster.com. For more details, please visit norfolkadmirals.com

To purchase tickets to any Admirals game, you may visit the Scope Box Office weekdays from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., visit any Ticketmaster outlet, call Ticketmaster at (757) 671-8100 or visit Ticketmaster online at www.ticketmaster.com. Don’t miss a minute of the action by purchasing your 2008-09 season tickets today. Stop by the Admirals’ Administrative Offices at Scope, call (757) 640-1212 weekdays from 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. or visit norfolkadmirals.com anytime!

Notes … Norfolk allowed the first goal of the game for the first time in seven games … Scott Jackson registered his first professional multiple point game with a pair of assists … After going without a goal in his first 112 professional games, Mike Lundin now has goals in each of Norfolk’s last two games … Chris Gratton has points in three straight contests (1G, 2A) and in five of the seven games he has appeared in for the Admirals this season (1G, 5A) … Blair Jones has assists in five of the last seven games (6A) … Defenseman Ty Wishart was recalled by the Lightning earlier in the day and made his NHL debut in Tampa Bay’s 3-2 loss at Carolina tonight … The Admirals signed defenseman Mitch Ganzak to a Professional Tryout Contract (PTO) earlier in the day and Ganzak made his Admirals debut … Scratches: F Pete Zingoni, F Juraj Simek, D Andy Rogers, F Brandon Segal … Attendance: 4,511.